


The Trouble with Meddling Wizards

by alifletcher2010



Category: A Court of Thorns and Roses Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Hogwarts, Humor, Witches, Wizards
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-12
Updated: 2020-03-21
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:28:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,921
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22671004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alifletcher2010/pseuds/alifletcher2010
Summary: Feyre Archeron, nearly appointed DADA professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry wasn't expecting much trouble during her first year teaching. Sure, the occasional detention or write-up was to be expected, underage wizards being what they are. What she was not expecting was to spend so much of her time trapped in increasingly unlikely and awkward situations with her once best friend turned nemesis, Professor Rhysand Knight. No, Professor Archeron hadn't expected her first year to turn out to be so much trouble at all.How very wrong she was.
Relationships: Feyre Archeron/Rhysand
Comments: 24
Kudos: 122





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s here! Finally!
> 
> Some background. Over the winter holidays, I wrote the fic Broomcupboard Rendezvous for ACOTAR AU week 2019. It got an incredible response and I couldn’t help but think about how much fun it would be to write more of this AU and with everyone’s love, I couldn’t help but do it. However, you should know, this starts way at the beginning. Feyre has just started teaching and she and Rhys do NOT get along yet. We’ve got a ways to go till, so buckle up. It’s going to be a fun ride full of shenanigans and nosey students! There will be angst! There will be fluff! There will be making out in broom cupboards!
> 
> Another quick note, if you are wondering how this fits in with the extended Harry Potter universe...it doesn’t? I mean there was a war, and Voldemort, and the golden trio, but I won’t really be using any of JK’s characters because its just far too complicated and I don’t really love everything that’s come out since the books. Hopefully that makes sense?
> 
> So, with all of that out of the way, please enjoy the first chapter!

Feyre Archeron, newly appointed Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, hadn’t really expected too much trouble when she started her new job. No, she hadn’t expected any real trouble whatsoever. She had left all her worries and past behind. This was her fresh start, returning to the place where it had all begun.

In fact, it was a little like coming home again.

The moment she walked on the grounds from the village, Feyre was at peace, full of optimism for the coming year. All the tension in her shoulders, that heavy weight she had been carrying for years now, lifted and the knots in her stomach unwound.

This was where she belonged.

Sure, it was strange, not seeing a soul on the lawn or walking past the Quidditch pitch and not hear the shrill tone of a captain’s whistle being blown. No one greeted her as she walked up the path with her magicked trunks floating along behind her.

Hogwarts in the summer after all, was empty.

Feyre had never seen it empty before. It was a bit melancholic, not to hear the laughter and chatter of students floating along on the breeze. But it wasn’t lifeless, as she feared it would be. It must be the magic of the place, that life and joy seemed to seep out from every blade of grass, like the very air she breathed was thick with it. For the first time in months, she felt alive again, like a missing piece of her soul had found its way back to her.

Everywhere she turned, she was bombarded by memories. There was the tree she would curl up under with her sisters. There was the practice pitch where she had broken her arm and very firmly decided broomsticks were not for her. There was their special corner of the lake where she and Mor skinny dipped for the very first time in the dead of night. Or where they had pushed Cassian in after he been particularly annoying. A thousand memories, locked away in the hidden corners of her mind, filled her. Thoughts of late night study sessions and sneaking around the halls. Looking into a pair of violet eyes and seeing the stars looking back at her. Long ago she had shoved these memories away, but being here, in this place, she couldn’t seem to keep them locked away anymore.

Of course, with the good memories came others as well, the ones she was trying so very hard to forget.

Feyre tried to keep her eyes forward as she the broom shed, but her gaze was drawn to it nevertheless. She tried to push back down those memories, tried not to think of _him_...but at that moment, a soft gust of summer breeze blew her hair in her face. Without thinking, Feyre tucked the strands back behind her ears with her left hand and then caught a sight of the white band of flesh on her tanned finger.

She still hadn’t gotten used to the weightless feeling of not having a ring there anymore, it was like being unshackled after years of imprisonment.

“Feyre!” a voice called to her, making her start, shaking her from her thoughts.

The Headmistress, a plump, cheerful woman with willowy, dark hair, was hurrying down to the castle to her. When Feyre had attended, she was Professor Alis Arboribus, Herbology professor extraordinaire, and Feyre’s Head of House. Now she reigned supreme over the castle as headmistress and rightfully so.

“Headmistress,” Feyre said, giving her a nod of deference.

“Nonsense, Feyre, we’re peers now, call me Alis.” The older woman swept her into a tight hug, before walking her up the remainder of the path to the school.

“Alis,” the name still felt strange on her tongue, “It’s good to see you. It’s good to be here.”

“We’re so happy to have you. I’ve been trying to get you to teach for years and I’m so grateful the stars aligned just right that we could finally snatch you up.” As they approached the castle doors, Alis waved them open with a flick of her wand. “We have your room set up on the fourth floor near the many of the professors that room in the castle. Luckily for you, it’s very near a staircase to the third floor, so you won’t have to travel far to your classroom.”

“It will be strange, teaching in a room I was taught in, not so many years ago.”

Alis gave a soft chuckle. “It was strange for all of us, at one time.”

They chatted comfortably through their journey through the school. Every step they took was another walk through Feyre’s memory. She could feel the castle welcoming her home with open arms and she became more sure with every step that this was where she was meant to be.

Soon enough they reached a quiet wing of the fourth floor Feyre had never really noticed before and Alis led her to a surprisingly grand set of rooms. There was a quiet sitting room with a wide hearth and soft armchairs that connected to a large bedroom and bathroom. Feyre could already hear the grand four poster bed calling her name.

“I’ll leave you to get settled. You’ll have the afternoon to rest and unpack. I do hope you’ll join us for dinner in the Great Hall. It’ll be a quiet affair as most of the professors have been here for at least a week already. Of course, you’re more than welcome to request a tray. Either way, eat up, your real work starts tomorrow!”

Alis gave her one more smile and then left Feyre to settle in. Though she knew she ought to get started right away, Feyre could only collapse on her new bed in joy. This was her year, she could feel it in the magic of the place around her, a promise that something wonderful was on her horizon.

-

Hours later, a more rested and somewhat unpacked Feyre made her way down to the main floor for dinner. The joy she had felt had vanished after her short nap and now her stomach was churning again.

Sure, she was intimidated a bit at meeting all the professors as peers for the very first time, but she was most nervous about meeting one in particular.

Rhysand Knight.

He was the one blip in her fresh start. The thought of seeing him again, after their storied past...it was nearly enough for her not to take the job. She wasn’t sure if she could stand his mocking smiles and knowing looks or smart comments about her failed engagement.

But Feyre Archeron, DADA prodigy was no coward, and she wasn’t going to let one insufferable bastard ruin things for her. So she steeled herself and joined her fellow professors in the Great Hall.

To her surprise and relief, Rhysand was not there. At least not yet. She wasn’t sure if she was glad about this or if it left her on edge for the inevitable confrontation.

Before she could dwell too long on it, she was swept into conversations with the other professors, all eager to meet her and ask her about her studies around the world. Slowly, she began to feel at ease among them. Another sign she had made the right choice. But it didn’t keep her from eyeing the doors with dread occasionally. And not until Professor Cresswell of Muggle Studies spoke was she able to relax completely.

“It seems Professor Knight won’t be joining us,” she said a few spots down from where Feyre sat.

“Oh no, there’s some great convergence or star shower or some other nonsense this week and he’ll be up in the Astronomy tower all week. I doubt we’ll see very much of him at all until school starts,” grumbled Professor Smith, who taught Potions and was overall a disagreeable old man. Feyre had hated his classes in school.

Though a curmudgeon he may be, Professor Smith’s supposition proved accurate. Over the week as the teachers prepared for students to arrive, Feyre hardly saw that pair of familiar violet eyes. Instead her days were spent in ministry required group training, prepping her classroom, and going over her course outlines and plans with the headmistress. When the week ended, Feyre was exhausted, but ready to face the new school year. She had nearly forgotten about Professor Knight altogether. And with the strange schedule Astronomy Professors kept to be able to see the stars best, she began to hope that they might hardly ever cross paths.

Oh how very wrong she was.

-

Feyre should have known it was also too good to last. A week into school and things were going far too well. She loved her students, she loved Hogwarts, she loved teaching. Most of the Professors she got along with fine and so far, she had successfully avoided Professor Knight. In fact, the only time she had seen him at all was at the opening feast over a week ago now and he had sat on the complete opposite end of the table from her, his eyes never straying to her once. Feyre had her hopes of making it through at least the first term without her having to speak more than a few words with him.

Unfortunately, her hopes were completely dashed on the second day of the second week of school. Between classes she had a short break, long enough to slip down to the staff room for a quiet sip of tea. It could do no harm, giving her brain a short break.

Feyre really should have known better than to tempt fate by breaking from her routine. Because there, sitting regally in a high backed armchair with a book in his hands was Professor Rhysand Knight.

It had been years since she had seen him, and the time had treated him well. Rhysand had always been handsome, but never before had his ebony hair and sharp jaw made her heart stutter the way it did when she was confronted by his image for the first time in far too long. Everything about him looked larger, like the room could barely contain his presence. It took everything in Feyre to look away from the dress shirt stretched tight across his chest under his robes and busy herself with making tea.

So much for a quiet moment.

The silence grew between them until it filled every corner of the room. It felt so heavy and ominous Feyre could barely breathe. She kept her back to him as she readied her tea, hoping against hope nothing would be said.

By the time she was settled into a distant couch with her tea, too much time had passed to speak without it being awkward and she wanted nothing more than for the floors to open up and swallow her whole. Knowing Hogwarts, it was likely possible too.

Softly, almost venomously, Rhysand spoke, “So is this how it’s going to be, you’re just going to pretend I don’t exist.”

Feyre rolled her eyes. There wasn’t a soul in the earth that got under her skin as quickly as he did. “Oh don’t act so high and mighty, Rhysand. It’s not like you said anything either.”

The animosity that had colored their last few meetings since leaving Hogwarts was very much present. “Oh, I’m Rhysand again. I’m hurt Feyre.” He gave a dramatic sigh, but his eyes still didn’t leave his book. “And I thought it was obvious I was trying to keep you from getting into trouble.”

_Getting into trouble? What?_

Feyre could feel her temper rising at the confusion and uncomfortableness of being here along with him for after so long. “Oh don’t act all high and mighty around me _Rhys_.” The once familiar name tasted wrong on her tongue as she spat it out. “I got you out of one too many detentions in school for that. We both know you’re a bastard through and through.”

Rhysand’s temper seemed to snap and he finally looked at Feyre for the first time in too many years, rising from his chair, and shutting his book with a resounding thud. Being confronted with the anger and hurt in those once friendly eyes broke something in Feyre but didn’t stop the anger inside her from bubbling out. No one got to her like Rhys always had.

Rhysand prowled closer to her, like a predator on the hunt, showing off how incredibly lethal he looked. “You know, I always knew he would change you Feyre. Sometimes, I really hate being right all the time.”

Feyre saw red. Rhys...Rhys had no idea how thoroughly her _ex_ -fiance had changed her. Just the thought of him and those long years wasted on him, on everything she had tried so hard to forget..it was enough to have Feyre bounding up from her seat and marching to the door, seething. Whatever kind of friendship they had during Hogwarts, it was obviously gone now.

Before leaving the staff room, Feyre turned back to hurl one last insult at Rhysand, but found him far closer than she anticipated. Any clever thought she had fled her mind but her anger still demanded a response.

“Go to hell, Rhysand,” she spat out, “You and I, whatever we may have been...we’re nothing now. I am your coworker now and nothing else.”

The bell rang and Feyre suppressed a groan. Some break. She pulled the door open to leave, only to have her way blocked by a strong arm and expansive chest. Rhysand was standing over her, so close she had to tilt her head back to meet his eyes. He bent his head down to whisper in her ear.

“You keep telling yourself that, _Darling_.”

Feyre swallowed and willed her cheeks not to flush, the old nickname making her stomach curl. Instead she pushed away from him and turned to go back to her classroom. Only to be greeted by at least a dozen curious faces, their eyes darting between Feyre’s red cheeks and Rhysand’s smirking face.

And that was the moment Feyre Archeron knew her first year at Hogwarts would be nothing _but_ trouble. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! I hope this chapter finds you well! The world has become such a strange place since the last time I posted on this! I've really struggled with my anxiety the last few weeks and writing has been very difficult with all the fear in the world right now. Thankfully, I think I'm getting back to my old self. I hope this chapter brings you some joy in these scary times as I know it was good for me to write it. Love you all and hope you are staying safe and healthy. I excited for these students to start causing mayhem and I hope you are too!

The early morning sunlight streamed through the opened bed curtains, dancing across Feyre’s face, mocking her with its cheery rays. Instead of reveling in the brightness of the morning, of a fresh new day of her fresh new life, Feyre rolled over and buried her head in her pillows. Feyre had felt no need to close them the night before since she had her own private room. Now though, she wished she could go back and shake her past self for leaving the curtains open and being so hopeful about her new job at Hogwarts...and so, _so_ much more. Currently, the thought of getting out of bed and facing the day was about as appealing as kissing a troll. Somehow her fresh start, her blessed do-over, had become another page in the longer, unending nightmare of the story her life had been these last few years.

_Three days._ It had been just three days and it was as if her world had been flipped on its head. She really should have been more careful, not being caught anywhere near Professor Knight. Two young, reasonably attractive professors being seen together, alone and standing very close...Well it was no wonder the rumor mill had run wild. And she of all people should have known that if there was one thing about Hogwarts that never changed, it was the unending gossip, growing wilder with each day. And how detrimental those rumors could be.

Unbidden a memory plagued Feyre as she finally convinced herself to stumbled out of bed and began getting ready.

\--  
 _She sat in the dim light of the library, shuffling through her books, trying not to appear nervous. Feyre had never done something like this and she felt utterly ridiculous. Her, a tutor? But they needed the money. Badly. Her school robes were wearing thin and the last vestiges of summer were fading. She and her sisters would need new coats if they were to survive another cold winter in this castle. And once again it seemed that as soon as his daughters were out of sight, they were truly out of mind for her father. He hadn’t bothered to reply and any of hers, Nesta’s, or even Elain’s letters. And they were getting desperate._

_The only sounds in the quiet library were the whispers of other students and the crinkling of turning pages. Even those sounds seemed far away from Feyre, secluded in a far off corner of the library, at the request of the student she would be tutoring. No prying eyes here. Time crawled by and Feyre glanced at her watch. 8:05. They were late. Whoever they were. It was stupid prehaps, not to have asked who they were beforehand, but she trusted her professor. But now, in this dark corner, all alone, she could feel her confidence fleeing._

_A shadow fell across the table, and Feyre looked up at the new arrival, her stomach clenched in fear. Because no other than Rhysand Knight stood there._

_She knew him by reputation only. A few years older than her and a Slytherin to a T, Rhysand Knight came from a long line of pure blooded wizards. He seemed to fill every room he was in with a frightening aurora of darkness, and even though he was easily the most handsome boy at school, no gaggle of admirers followed him. He wasn’t exactly popular, but everyone seemed to know who he was. And though things at Hogwarts were more safe than they had been in the past, nasty rumors always seemed to follow him and his little group of friends. No one could ever prove that they actually did anything, but the cruel sneer he always wore was enough to convince most of the rumor mill of the school that even decades after the Second Wizarding War, some people, some families never really changed._

_What had Professor Surihel been thinking? He was by far her favorite professor, and it didn’t help that he taught her favorite subject, Defense Against the Dark Arts. He had even advanced her to the fourth year class, even though she was just a third year, because he saw how proficient she was. He claimed she could even be doing NEWT level work, if the school would allow it. In fact, when she had confided in him she couldn’t afford all new books again for the new class, he had loaned her his own set and then helped arrange the tutoring so she could gain a little extra income._

_But now, she was seriously wondering if he was off his rocker. Tutoring younger students was one thing...but this…_

_This was insanity._

_Rhysand plopped down into the chair across from her, his face an unreadable mask, and pulled out his books and parchment. Feyre stared at him, slack jawed, not even noticing or caring that she was staring. She had never been this close to him before and being near him was overwhelming. With his tousled black hair, violet eyes, and warm brown skin, she could see how every student in the school seemed to have a crush on him._

_“What?” his voice was surprisingly soothing, but still caught her off guard, out of sorts from staring._

_“You?” she asked, still unbelieving._

_He looked her straight in the eye, daring her to look away, a guarded look on his face. “Me.”_

_Feyre began gathering her stuff together, “I can’t tutor you.”_

_Rhysand snorted and a knowing look crossed his face. “And why is that, Darling?” he sneered._

_“Don’t call me that,” Feyre hissed, as stuffed books back into her bag. “You’re a fifth year. OWL level. I’m not good enough to help you.”_

_Learning back in his seat, Rhysand tucked his arms behind his head as if he didn’t have a care in the world, but still his eyes pierced her, reading her, drawing out her secrets. “Professor Surihel doesn’t seem to think so. Apparently, I’m behind enough that I’m lucky I was even allowed to move up to the OWL level class.” He tipped forward in his chair, allowing all the legs to sit on the ground again, a sudden severeness stole over his features, the easy smile replaced again with his mask of indifference. “But that’s not what this is really about, is it? You’re a DADA prodigy, everyone seems to know that. No, this is about me.”_

_Feyre turned her head, not quite willing to meet his eyes, those eyes that seemed to just know. “Yes.”_

_Rhysand scoffed, “You know it's funny, even a muggleborn like you who couldn’t have had a family killed in the wars by the hands of one of my ancestors, even you’re so quick to judge. I should have known better.”_

_Before Feyre could even blink, he was gone, leaving the little corner of the library full of unspoken words. Feyre had a sinking feeling she had just made a terrible misjudgment._  
\--

It had taken a week to screw up her Gryffindor courage, but Feyre had marched across a crowded hallway and apologized, loud enough for half the students to hear her admit she had misjudged him, not caring that she had just turned herself into a social pariah. And when he showed up the next week in the library, she found she didn’t care about her social standing one bit. Her conscience was clear. 

That had been the beginning of their alliance and eventual friendship.

Of course, none of that mattered now, now that Rhysand had made it abundantly clear he wanted nothing to do with her. And thinking about whatever their past may have been would only serve to distract her. And today, today she could not afford to be distracted. Because today she faced the fifth years.

Or more specifically, the fifth year Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. It would have been easier to deal with them if she genuinely disliked the students, but _no_. Each one was incredibly bright and talented and friendly. She felt each and every one of them could pass their OWLs already. Overall, they had been a joy to teach. Until the rumors started.

Feyre had never once before considered how calamitous the mixture of Ravenclaw wit and Hufflepuff sociability could be, but now she was all too aware. To begin with, they were the class period right before lunch, universally accepted as by far the most disastrous class period of the day already, the students too distracted by thoughts of food and friends to really focus on the class material. Add in that a handful of them had been in the crowd of students that had witnessed her close encounter with Rhysand in the teacher’s lounge and that the rest were far too invested and astute for their own good...well they were quickly becoming her least favorite class to teach.

Slowly, Feyre finished getting ready for the day, making to put on her most severe and unapproachable outfit before shrugging on her robes. It wouldn’t do her any good, but it was worth trying. She didn’t bother going to the Great Hall for breakfast, too many wary eyes and whispers would follow her, choosing instead to munch on a few biscuits she had stolen from the kitchens the night before. Eventually, she would have to take a meal in the Great Hall, but not today.

Of course, by the time the bell signaling the end of the previous period rang, Feyre was seriously regretting her choices. As bright-eyed faces with far too eager of eyes for learning the history of Unforgivable Curses filled her classroom, Feyre knew she was in for an hour of nothing but trouble. Trouble she would be facing on a very empty stomach and the beginnings of a headache.

Hushed voices chattered, growing ever louder as more students filed in. The glances thrown her way grew bolder every moment and Feyre had the sneaking suspicion that she was, once again, the subject of some outlandish rumor.

The rumors, oh Merlin, the rumors.

Somehow in the space of a few short days, Feyre’s relationship with Professor Knight had gone from that of professional courtesy, to a dark, forbidden whirlwind romance. Thwarted at every turn by the headmistress and the rules of the school, the couple could not be broken apart, and still they fought for their love. Feyre would have thought it to be an interesting love story had it not been about her and so very, utterly false. And if the rumors were to be believed, at least a dozen students had seen them in some scandalous position of some sort in growing ever more ridiculous places. The last she had heard, a sixth year prefect had spotted them passionately necking or some other preposterous action in the school Owlery right at the same time Feyre had been teaching her third years. And yet, not a single student seemed to question it.

If there was one thing Feyre should have learned while she herself was a student, is that the more bizarre and fantastical a rumor was, the more it was accepted as fact.

The bell sounded throughout the castle, and yet her delightful class was still chattering on. Even when she took her place at the front of the classroom and loudly cleared her throat, they kept talking. It wasn’t until she took out her wand and wordlessly snuffed out every single lamp, did silence finally fall and her class turned to her with rapt attention.

“Now that you have all decided to join in the class,” she said, “Please open your books to pa-”

A hand shot up. _Damn._ She hadn’t even made it a minute into the class period.

“Noritt, if this question does not pertain to the topic at hand, I suggest saving your thoughts until later.”

The Ravenclaw boy grinned sheepishly, but spoke anyway, the words rushing to leave his mouth, as if he knew she would cut him off at any second, “Well, you see, Professor, we noticed you haven’t been to the Great Hall for a lot of meals lately and well, we’ve heard it might be true you and Professor Knight were classmates at Hogwarts and not just that, Zinnia Felix swears she saw you and Prof-”

Apparently Noritt’s boldness encouraged the class and a heartbeat later they were all speaking, throwing question after question her way, talking over one another so rapidly that she could only catch snippets of what was spoken. But those snippets were enough to have her temper flaring and her head pounding.

“- Oberon Jones heard from Lyla Thomas that Professor Knight sent two dozens bouquets of-”

“No, I heard, it was one and a box-”

“-heard noises from a broom cupboard-”

“I mean, what do Professors do with their free periods anyway?”

“During breakfast, Castor Smith said he heard from a house elf they were both down in the kitchens and-”

“You’re an imbecile, she clearly wasn’t at breakfast because she was sleeping in his rooms-”

“ENOUGH,” Feyre roared. She hated to raise her voice, but there was no way she could allow the outlandish rumors and gossip to continue any longer.

Sudden silence descended on the class and every student turned to her with guilty looks on their faces. Feyre let them stew in their guilt for a moment and turned her attention to the source of the problem. She steeled a deadly glance on the Ravenclaw boy and he flushed red.

“Malus Noritt, I fail to see how this pertains to the subject at hand for the day,” she worked hard to keep her tone unaffected but stern. Still the boy opened his mouth to speak, but Feyre knew better than allow him to get a word in, “And before you give me some excuse that I’m sure you think is very clever, I would like to remind you that we are just a few weeks into this term. I would hate for you to lose your house a significant sum of points before it has had a chance to earn them.”

Noritt snapped his mouth shut and ducked his head, her words having the effect she desired. Feyre turned from the boy to the rest of the class.

“Now, for the rest of you.” Feyre allowed heavy silence to fall as she eyed the rest of the class, some of the more outspoken students squirming in their seats. “I realize I cannot control what you speak of outside of my classroom, but inside my classroom, if I hear a single hint of a whisper about myself or Professor Knight, I will not hesitate to put each and everyone of you in detention. Am I understood?”

There was a murmur of ascent and a few nods. “Now, please open your books to page 38 and take out your wands. Let’s begin.”

Feyre turned to her chalkboard feeling much lighter, having finally squelched the rumors. But if she had seen the determined looks shared by the students behind her back, she would have been very worried. And if she had seen just one of the slips of paper passed around her classroom during her lesson, she would have been very worried indeed.

Her meddlesome students were up to something. Apparently, her troubles were just getting started.


End file.
